Mythic
by Miacis
Summary: Wheeljack's attempt at creating a legend doesn't go quite as planned. And, as Spike said, "Unicorns are kind of... girly..." Multi character, with Hound and Windcharger featuring in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: Transformers is copyright Hasbro, Inc._

The bright sun, the cool shade of the trees, and the vibrant sounds of the forest were almost enough to make Stephanie forget all about Karen and the fight that morning. At the very least, it helped her to calm down.

The ten year old was sitting beneath her favorite tree, on the edge of a clearing in the middle of the forest that stretched behind her neighborhood. This was her "secret" spot, the place she retreated to whenever she wanted to be alone; not even her parents knew of it. Only her older sister, Karen, had ever gone exploring with her in the forest, when they used to look for things like unicorns and fairies together. But that had changed recently; Karen no longer had any interest in magic since she'd started taking notice of fashion and boys, or any interest in a little sister anymore, either. Their parents called it "being a teenager"; Stephanie thought it was just plain mean.

That's what the fight had been about- Karen had ridiculed Steph for bringing an old fantasy book to the breakfast table, calling her a "baby" and telling her to "grow up". That had really hurt, since the book used to be Karen's and they had both loved to sit together, admiring the beautiful pictures and reading aloud the chronicled lore.

She was rereading her favorite page of the very same book when she heard a sound- it was like thunder, but continuous and growing louder, as if something were approaching. Steph frowned; she'd never heard a sound like that in the forest...

There was a deafening roar as a jet came in low over the treetops, smoke trailing from one wing. Steph screamed and jumped as the blue F-15 nosed into the clearing, transforming just in time to avoid a crash. Thundercracker didn't even notice the girl as she fled, or the book she dropped as she did so.

The Seeker swore to himself as he clutched at his damaged left wing. He and the other jets had just been involved in a firefight with the Autobots, where Thundercracker had taken a hit from a laser just before that idiot Starscream had ordered a retreat, indifferent to the fact that his injured comrade couldn't keep up. Unable to maintain speed or altitude, the desperate jet had flown over the forest, hoping to lose or at least slow his Autobot pursuers in the trees, but even now he could hear their engines approaching. A flash of yellow darted through the trees before the tell-tale sound of transformation revealed Bumblebee; other Autobots were appearing behind him. Trapped and outnumbered, Thundercracker made his stand, firing an incendiary round at the little yellow Autobot. Bumblebee narrowly leaped out of the way, and the round hit the tree behind him.

It had been a dry summer; the tree was almost immediately consumed in a fireball, its flames starting to catch the foliage around it. Thundercracker saw the startled looks on the Autobots as they jumped away from the engulfed tree, and suddenly saw a way out of his situation. He began firing into the trees themselves, quickly losing the Autobots in a chaos of flame and smoke.

"Hurry and get that fire out! There are houses nearby!" Prowl shouted, unable to see his own hand in front of his face as thick smoke engulfed the clearing. "Trailbreaker, use your force field and contain it!"

It was several minutes before the fire was under control, and several more before the smoke had cleared enough that anyone could see a thing; by then, Thundercracker was long gone, having fled in an unknown direction.

"Well, at least we got the fire out before it could do much damage," Bumblebee said with forced optimism, as Wheeljack doused a hotspot. "Hey, what's this?" The engineer turned to look as Bumblebee bent to pick up a strange object. It was a book, laying open on the ground, its pages slightly curled from the heat of the fire. "Where did this come from?"

"Dunno," Wheeljack remarked, glancing at it with mild curiosity. Being a human-sized book, the text was annoying small to read, so he didn't bother with it at first, but there was a picture- a white, quadrupedal Earth beast with a single horn protruding from its head. Having never seen such a creature before, he searched the accompanying text for a name: "Unicorn".

* * *

"A unicorn, huh?" he said to no one in particular, before Prowl called him over to put out another hotspot.

"A unicorn? I've never heard of that sort of animal before," Hound said later that evening, when Bumblebee had asked him about it. The away team was now back at the Ark, having failed to pick up Thundercracker's trail again. Hound had been gently teasing them that they should have had him along when Bumblebee had mentioned the strange creature in the book.

"That's because it doesn't exist," Spike broke in. "It's a myth, you know, a legend." He smiled at his friends' naiveté. Many of them tried to learn and understand Earth and its civilizations, but there were still many gaps in their knowledge.

"We'll just see about _that_," Wheeljack said, walking in from the direction of his lab. He was holding the book in one hand, its binding broken to the page with the unicorn.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Spike.

"Well," the engineer explained, "I've been planning some experiments for a while, and I think that a robot modeled after a unicorn would fit perfectly."

"Why?"

"Because of the nature of the experiments. I'm going to attempt to replicate some of the abilities used by the Decepticons- Ravage's stealth, Skywarp's teleportation, and the Insecticons' ability to ingest organic matter. From what I've read here, unicorns are considered elusive creatures- it'd be a perfect fit."

"That sounds like a lot to build into one robot," Prowl remarked, as passersby began to take interest in the conversation and gather.

"It _sounds _like a lot of trouble," Huffer added.

"Optimus only approved the creation of one unit. I'd like to make the most of it."

"But why don't you make it something cool, then," Spike suggested, grabbing the book from Wheeljack's hand and flipping through it. "How about a-" He paused as he opened to a picture of a phoenix, and decided not to finish that thought. Wheeljack's experiments had a tendency to go up in flame as it was.

"Is there a problem, Spike?" Wheeljack asked, puzzled.

"No, it's just that, well, unicorns are kind of... girly." Spike faltered as he tried to explain yet another aspect of Earth cultural norms that the Autobots didn't understand.

"They seem pretty neat to me," Hound said, as he took the book from Spike and found the unicorn page. "Now, let me see..." He studied the picture for a moment before projecting a hologram of it in the middle of the room. Several murmurs of approval went through the assembled crowd as the holographic unicorn began to move around, even walking up to Spike and loudly sniffing his ear, much like a horse.

"That settles it, then!" Wheeljack said happily. Spike just sighed in defeat.


	2. Chapter 2

"Okay, everyone, get ready for it!"

Wheeljack surveyed his audience with great satisfaction. In addition to Optimus Prime and his sub-commanders, about a half dozen curious Autobots had shown up for a demonstration of his newest invention. Spike was also there, and he'd even brought his friend Carly along.

In truth, Spike hadn't brought Carly along so much as Carly had brought herself along, having taken interest in Wheeljack's experiment despite also not thinking much of unicorns. ("Too girly," she'd said, much to Spike's amusement and Bumblebee's vexation.) Part of Spike wished that she had not been so insistent about seeing the results firsthand; she was still fairly new to the Autobots, and not quite familiar with how... unpredictable Wheeljack's inventions could be. Although the goals of the experiment seemed innocuous enough, that didn't mean that something couldn't go wrong, or that Wheeljack hadn't "added" any additional features to his robot during the design process. Although Spike could recall nothing in folklore to suggest that unicorns breathed fire, he was pretty sure dinosaurs didn't, either, but that hadn't stopped Wheeljack from giving the Dinobots flamethrowers. And look how _that _had turned out.

"All right, Wheeljack, let's see what you've got," Optimus said evenly. They were all gathered in the main area of the Ark, as Wheeljack's lab was too small to accommodate everyone or allow a full demonstration of his unicorn's abilities.

"Yes, this should be _real good_," Huffer snickered from somewhere in the back of the crowd. Spike frowned at him; it seemed as though he'd shown up just to heckle the inventor, going so far as to trade duty with someone to have the morning free. Even if Spike didn't much care for the engineer's choice of aesthetics for his new robot, he was sure that its abilities would be impressive. Hopefully it wouldn't do too much damage to the Ark, either.

"Ratchet's bringing him out right now," Wheeljack assured, just as the medical officer called down the hall for some assistance. Signaling to the assembled crowd to wait, Wheeljack strode somewhat bemusedly toward his lab to see what the problem was. Autobots began to shift and chatter restlessly as several minutes passed.

"Do you think there's a problem?" Carly asked as she turned to Spike and Bumblebee. Spike resisted the urge to reply that there was always a problem. Huffer's open pessimism had made him determined to give Wheeljack the benefit of the doubt. Before he could think of anything else to say, though, Carly grabbed his shoulder. "Hey, someone's coming!"

Sure enough, Ratchet strode into the room, looking more irritated than usual, stepping aside to let something else through. "You'd all better stand back," he said wearily. Everyone hastily complied as some- _thing_- shyly entered behind him. The room fell into silence as everyone took in the creature before them.

Though larger than he'd thought it would be- about as tall as a draft horse- Spike had to admit that the unicorn's design was otherwise quite faithful to the picture in the book; though it resembled a horse, especially the head, it was slender in build, more like a deer or antelope. Its mane stood erect, looking sharp as an ax blade, and its lion-like tail ended in what looked like metallic tendrils meant to simulate hair. Rather than white, the unicorn's body was a mix of soft grays and silvers, while the cloven hooves and long, spiraling horn seemed cast in quicksilver. The unicorn stopped in the center of the crowd and looked about nervously; its hooves never made a sound.

"All right, everyone, don't scare him," Wheeljack said, carefully walking in behind it. The unicorn started and looked back at him before settling back into quiet watchfulness.

"Is it dangerous?" Prowl asked, regarding it uncertainly.

"Not exactly," Wheeljack replied, then, seeing the looks on everyone's faces, hastened to add, "He's just shy. Hound, be careful!" The scout had taken a cautious step forward, making reassuring noises at the unicorn as one might a frightened horse. The unicorn watched him carefully for a moment, but spooked when he held out his hand to it.

"You're doing it wrong," Carly said, and before Spike could react she stepped forward matter-of-factly. The unicorn snapped its head in her direction but otherwise did not move as she approached, until she was standing right next to it. It lowered its head to her and she touched her hand to its nose, stroking it lightly.

"How did you do that?" asked Hound.

"Easy," replied Carly, not looking away from the unicorn. "According to the legends, only maidens can tame unicorns. Or something like that. I read up on it before I came."

"Maidens?" asked Hound, but before a possibly awkward explanation on the qualifications of a "maiden" could begin, Wheeljack broke in.

"I don't know about _that_," he said, "but let me show you some of his abilities." He turned to address Carly. "You don't happen to have any organic food on you, do you?"

"Oh, I have some!" Spike eagerly volunteered, reaching into the bag lunch Carly had been nice enough to bring him but which contained entirely too many healthy things for his liking. "Here!" Grabbing an apple, he moved to bring it too her, but quickly stopped as the unicorn sidled. "Catch!" he cried, throwing it to her instead. Carly deftly caught it and, seeing the unicorn's interest in the object, held it out to the creature. The unicorn sniffed it- either because Wheeljack had given it olfactory sensors like an organic animal, or had programmed it to behave as though it did- and, with surprising delicacy for its size, took a bite from the apple. The assembled Autobots let out a collective cry of amazement. Wheeljack beamed with evident pride.

"Just like the Insecticons, he can convert organic matter into usable energy. While organic foods are a comparatively poor energy source for Cybertronian lifeforms, being able to use it could come in handy during emergencies or extended field missions. Someday, we might all be able to use organic energy sources!"

This prediction was met with a mixture of curiosity and disgust ("Next thing you know, we'll all be _transforming _into organics," muttered Huffer) although a few, such as Hound, smiled as though the thought were appealing.

"Hey, that tickles!" Carly exclaimed, as the unicorn finished the apple and sniffed her now empty hand, its tail swishing in apparent contentment. "I think she wants more."

"He can have the celery, too!" Spike said, but Carly fixed him with a dark look, and he realized that his plan to be rid of the fruits and vegetables was discovered. He was about to change the subject by asking why Carly had called the unicorn a "she" and Wheeljack called it a "he" when Optimus spoke.

"Very impressive," said the Autobot leader. "You said that it has other capabilities?"

"Wait'll you _see_ this!" Wheeljack said, and Spike was sure that this was where he would announce the part about the fire breathing. Instead, the engineer directed an order to the Ark's computer: "Teletraan, lights at 15 percent."

The computer obediently dimmed the lighting, and this time the audience gasped as the unicorn seemingly disappeared with it. Straining even as his eyes adjusted to the gloom, Spike could just make out the robotic beast's form next to Carly.

"I attempted to copy and improve on Ravage's ability to disappear in darkness, and his invisibility to most sensors. What do you think?"

"I think Ravage is going to be jealous when he finds out," Spike said, as Wheeljack let everyone admire his work for a few more moments before returning the lights to normal.

"Very, very impressive," Optimus nodded, and everyone else voiced their agreement. Everyone except Huffer.

"That's real nice and all," he said, pushing forward from the back to address Wheeljack more directly, "But what does it transform into?" The others also regarded him curiously, anxious to see what his neat invention could turn into.

"Well..." Wheeljack fumbled for a moment, as if trying to think of how to explain something. "He kind of... doesn't."

"What?!" Huffer shouted incredulously. The unicorn jumped.

"The systems I'm testing are very complex, and I couldn't fit them and be able to have him transform. Now that I know they work, though, I'm sure in the future I can-"

"How do you like that? A "transformer" that doesn't transform!" Huffer burst into laughter. The unicorn snorted and tossed its head, backing up.

"Easy, girl," Carly said as she tried to calm the creature. "Huffer, stop it, you're upsetting her."

"Anyway, there's one more thing I'd like to show you..." Wheeljack attempted to bring the presentation under control again, but the unicorn seemed to have other plans now. It turned away from the assembled crowd and started heading toward the hallway from which it had come.

"Hey!" Ratchet stepped in front of its path to block its escape. "Where do you think you're going?" The creature stopped with another distressed snort as soon as he did so and turned in a circle, swinging its head and dangerous looking horn in an agitated manner.

"Back up everyone, give him some space," Wheeljack said in a quiet, urgent tone, and everyone quickly complied. Bumblebee did so a little too quickly, backing straight into Jazz and knocking them both to the ground with a surprised shout.

The sudden noise and commotion proved more than the unicorn could handle; with a bugling cry, it reared up and pawed the air before dropping to the ground and charging into the crowd. Carly, Spike and the Autobots dove frantically out of its way as it plowed through, head lowered.

"Catch him before he escapes!" Wheeljack shouted.

"I've got him!" Ironhide shouted, jumping into the beast's path- a brave move that would have ended badly for him if the unicorn hadn't seemingly _phased _through him just moments before its silver horn would have tested itself against his armor. Ironhide just stood there in confusion as the unicorn galloped away behind him, toward the Ark's entrance. The other Autobots transformed and gave chase.

"What just happened?" Hound asked Wheeljack as the two navigated the Ark's corridors. The engineer was already pulling ahead, his vehicle mode much faster.

"Remember that thing I was about to show you? That was the teleporting ability," he answered sheepishly.

As fast as Wheeljack and a few of the others were, their efforts were for naught; already swift in its own right, the unicorn was also teleporting, instantly jumping from one spot to another and at greater and greater distances. Bumblebee, with Spike and Carly riding along, reached the Ark's entrance just in time to see the fleeing creature jump from one already distant point to one just barely visible on the horizon, only to disappear again. It did not reappear.

Not long after, the pursuing Autobots all returned to meet up in front of the Ark, dejected but without a trail to follow.

"I just don't understand it," Wheeljack said. "The teleporting ability shouldn't have been _that_ powerful!"

"Because stuff like this has _never_ happened before," Huffer snapped, trying unsuccessfully to shake off the dirt that had coated him as he'd chased the unicorn.

"That doesn't matter now," Optimus said, before an argument could break out. "We need to recover it before it can cause any more problems for us or anyone that comes across it."

"But how are we gonna do that, Prime?" Jazz asked. "Like Wheeljack said, it's invisible to our sensors."

"Not entirely," Hound broke in. Everyone turned to the scout as he explained. "Every time the unicorn teleports, it leaves a faint but distinctive energy signature. It's teleported too far away for me to detect it from here, but if I scout around my long range sensors might pick it up again."

"Very good," Optimus said. "You and Wheeljack will be in charge of the search operation, then. We need to find it as quickly as possible."


	3. Chapter 3

The unicorn had teleported quite some distance from the Ark before its energy reserves were all but spent, and it finally stopped in the shade of a forest. Its legs shaking, it lowered itself to rest in the shadows, so perfectly hidden as to go unnoticed by even the wary creatures of the wood.

The respite allowed it to muster what little energy it had left, but presently it recognized the need to refuel; it stood up and began to nibble at the low-lying browse and wild berries. It drifted through the trees, gradually making its way towards the scent of water. Though it had never seen a forest, the unicorn felt at ease here, especially after the unbearably claustrophobic confines of... whatever that place had been. It didn't matter now; it was in the past, along with those unsettling creatures that had tried to contain it.

The unicorn came to a small stream, and it was not alone there- a few deer stood on the opposite side, staring intently in its general direction. Pleased by their attention, the unicorn dropped some of its stealth abilities so that the deer could see it more clearly, but was puzzled by their confused reaction as it did so. Although it had never actually seen itself, it knew that its body must be very similar to theirs- why did they seem so alarmed?

Still mulling over the question, the unicorn stepped to the bank of the stream. Although food had helped it to regain energy, it still felt overheated and thirsty. Its horn glowed softly with energy as it first touched it to the water, causing the silt and other debris to forcibly retreat from it. It touched its muzzle to the cleared water, and it was then that it finally saw itself.

The unicorn stared at its reflection for a moment with wide optics, not sure what to make of what it was seeing. It had thought that it was like the deer- an organic being that belonged to this environment just as much as any leaf on a tree or beetle in the undergrowth. Instead it was a creature of hard metal- much like the beings that had held it prisoner...

The unicorn reared up with a cry that set the still watchful deer to flight, and leaping over the stream it took off through the trees. On and on it ran, as though it could outrun its own reflection, not knowing why it was so disturbing, but like so many other things that day- the way it had cleaned the water, the refusal to allow any but the female human near it or to let anyone hold it captive, it heeded a nature that its creator had never intended for it or even conceived of it having, and so it ran until its energy was again exhausted and it was forced to a stop. It had calmed a bit by then, and though still upset its higher level processes managed to regain control over the panic. It began to move through the trees once more, but at a much slower pace as it ate to regain its energy and attempted to clear its mind.

It became so caught up in this activity that it failed to notice that it wasn't alone.

* * *

"What am I looking at, Soundwave?" Megatron demanded irritably as he stared at the monitor. Laserbeak's camera seemed to be showing nothing but forest, tracking what looked like a shadow among the trees.

"Laserbeak, enhance image," Soundwave ordered. The screen temporarily distorted as Laserbeak began to add filters to it, causing the shadow to coalesce into a slightly more substantial form. However, it was only when the form stepped into a patch of sunlight that had found its way through the trees that they could see the figure in any detail.

"What _is _that?" Starscream asked, peering over Megatron's shoulder. Laserbeak and Buzzsaw had been dispatched to investigate a strange energy burst detected near a Decepticon outpost currently under construction, but this creature was not what they'd been expecting. "Some sort of Autobot trick?"

"It appears Cybertronian in design, but I've never seen anything like it before." Megatron considered for a moment. "Soundwave, send Ravage and capture it alive. Autobot trick or not, it obviously has cloaking technology that will serve us better than it will them."

"Yes, Megatron," Soundwave affirmed, and he departed to begin his task.

* * *

"How are you doing, Carly?" Spike asked over the radio.

"The same as the last time you asked. Bored," came the terse reply. Carly was sitting under a tree by herself, reading an engineering magazine. Some distance away, Spike and Bumblebee were sitting under a different tree, ready to come to her aid if necessary but at present just putting up with the string of complaints coming over their radio.

Spike just shook his head with a wry smile. Carly only had herself to blame for this situation, really; she had suggested that since the robotic unicorn had acted just like the actual beast of legend, perhaps the legends would offer a clue as to how they could recapture it. It had turned out that the legends said that unicorns would appear to maidens alone in the woods, and, being the closest thing they had to a "maiden", the job had fallen to Carly. So far, however, all they had succeeded in doing was wasting a day. Not that the search parties had had any better luck. Spike wondered if they should consult his friend, Chip Chase, for new ideas, but he was reluctant to introduce him to Carly- they were both extremely intelligent people with a lot in common, and once she had Chip to talk to, why would she want anything more to do with him?

Hoping to put the thought out of his mind, Spike keyed the radio. "By the way, Carly, I've been meaning to ask you... why did you keep calling the unicorn a 'she' when Wheeljack called it a 'he'?"

"Because it isn't a 'he' anymore than it's a 'she'," she said testily. Before Spike could respond, he heard the sound of an approaching engine. Looking down the dirt road that ran near to their tree, they saw a cloud of dust, a familiar figure visible within it.

"Wheeljack, kill your engine. You'll scare it away if it's anywhere near us," Bumblebee radioed to him. Wheeljack obediently shut off his engine and coasted the rest of the way to them before transforming.

"How's it going?" he asked.

"Not very well," Bumblebee answered glumly.

"Shouldn't you be in the lab?" Spike asked. Wheeljack had been busy since yesterday trying to devise a means to capture his escaped invention.

"I wasn't getting anywhere, so I thought I'd go for a drive to think things over," he replied. "I wanted to see how Carly's idea was working out." He settled down next to them, and Spike got the sense that that wasn't the only thing on his mind.

"I just don't get it," the engineer said, thinking aloud. "I didn't program the unicorn to have abilities that powerful, and I certainly didn't program it to behave the way it did- just like the old Earth stories say unicorns behave. I just... don't get it."

"Well," Spike said slowly, "Bumblebee and me were talking about it, and we were thinking...what if being a 'unicorn' means more than just having one horn?"

"What do you mean?" asked Wheeljack, but before Spike or Bumblebee could answer, Carly broke in over the radio, saying that she'd finished reading her magazine, was getting eaten alive by the bugs, and how much longer was she going to have to sit under this stupid tree?

* * *

"See anything yet, Hound?" Windcharger asked, coming as close to the scout's rear fender as he dared. Hound just made an irritable sound and didn't reply. Windcharger sighed and backed off to a more reasonable distance, scanning the scrublands around them as if his optics could possibly pick up something Hound's sensors couldn't. It wasn't as if he had anything better to do.

Although various Autobots had been partnered up and sent out to locate the wayward unicorn, only Hound's sensors were actually able to detect the energy signature left by its teleportation, giving him the best chance of actually locating it rather than just stumbling across it by sheer luck. Wheeljack had suggested that Windcharger's magnetic field might be able to hold it in place should they find it, so he had been paired with Hound. At first, Windcharger hadn't minded- everybody liked Hound- but after searching for all of last evening and into today with no results, both of them had become dispirited and cranky. Even the normally upbeat scout had become snappish- though not infallible, Hound wasn't used to his tracking skills being so thoroughly defeated, and it had put him in a bad mood.

Windcharger sighed again and accelerated close to Hound, weaving back and forth impatiently before he decided not to further test the Jeep's already frayed patience. He didn't care about the stupid unicorn- he'd even traded shifts with Huffer just so the other could see its unveiling- and what had seemed like a fun change of pace had quickly become a tedious grind. He hated being out in the wilderness- his vehicle mode wasn't designed for it, and his underside would be completely ruined by the time they returned to base- and it was unbearably slow going. Hound had to pick the trail, and his already slow vehicle mode seemed to crawl as he moved along in a search pattern. Windcharger felt like he couldn't take much more, and that all of his pent up energy was just going to burst out if he didn't find an outlet for it soon.

Hound stopped so suddenly that Windcharger had to swerve to the side to avoid rear-ending him. "Watch it!" the sports car complained.

"Quiet," snapped Hound, his turret gun weaving back and forth as it scanned, before homing in on a specific direction. "I'm picking up traces of its energy signature- it's very faint, but it's unmistakable."

"Well, what are we waiting for?!" Wincharger exclaimed, and he took off almost before Hound could blaze the trail for him. Finally, they were doing something!

* * *

As silent as the shadows themselves, Ravage watched his quarry with the intensity of a real jaguar stalking its prey. The unicorn appeared unaware of him as he hid among the trees, seeming to merge with the darkness of the forest. Though its stealth capability was comparable to his, the unicorn was making no attempt at hiding, allowing Ravage to follow it- barely- as it ambled through the dappled sunlight, where it was fully visible. The more he saw of its ability, the more he was filled with an inexplicable rage, but he was disciplined enough to not break his cover until the time was right. Laserbeak's reconnaissance had indicated that the creature was extremely fast, so he would have to get as close as possible before attacking.

He shifted position, stalking closer, and one paw brushed against a fallen leaf. It was a virtually noiseless motion- more like the suggestion of a sound than anything- but the unicorn's ears swiveled in his direction, and he knew that he had to make his move now. He leaped at the unicorn, who just barely avoided his teeth and claws as it took off through the forest. Ravage pursued, filled with both hatred and a sense of satisfaction; everything was going as planned.

* * *

Hound bounced over the increasingly rough terrain with renewed enthusiasm, and soon even Windcharger was having trouble keeping up, the rocks painfully scraping his underside as they climbed up the side of a small mountain. Hound stopped for a moment to re-affirm the direction, before starting up what seemed like a vertical cliff.

"Hey!" Windcharger protested, "I can't make it up that!" When the determined Hound just continued on towards the top, the little Autobot had no choice but to transform into his robot mode and climb up hand over foot.

Hound had already transformed by the time Windcharger made it up to him, intently scanning the valley below with both his optics and his sensors. At first, Windcharger saw nothing; just a forest bordering a floodplain. Suddenly, two mechanical figures broke from the treeline- one that fit the description of the unicorn, followed by the all-too-familiar form of Ravage as he chased after it. As soon as the two were clear of the trees, Laserbeak and Buzzsaw rose from their hiding spots and swooped upon the unicorn.

For a moment, Windcharger was transfixed by the unicorn's fluid, almost effortless motions; it leaped into the air as Buzzsaw dove at it, grazing the condor's wing and sending him crashing to the ground with a scream. Ravage surged forward to strike at it, but the unicorn danced aside and wheeled around, rearing up and slashing at the cat with its forehooves. Ravage narrowly avoided having his head crushed as the hooves came crashing down. Infuriated, both Ravage and Laserbeak started firing at it from a more respectful distance. Windcharger broke free of the spell and sprang into action.

"It's just Laserbeak and Ravage! We can take them out easy!" he shouted as he transformed and launched himself down toward the valley, hitting the incline with such force that a few non-essential parts broke off in the process.

"Wait!" Hound shouted after him in vain. Something wasn't right about this- how the Decepticons had just sent three small cassettebots after the unicorn, the way they fired _at_ the unicorn but didn't even seem to to be trying to hit it, how they mostly attacked from just one side, almost as if they were herding it-

"Windcharger, stop! It's a trap!" Hound called to him, but it was too late. Skywarp shimmered into view over the valley, dropping energon nets on both the unicorn and Windcharger. Before Hound could make a move, the roar of another jet sounded behind him; he turned to see Starscream coming in fast off the horizon. He had just begun transmitting a distress signal when he saw the flash of the Seeker's null ray, and then Hound knew no more.


	4. Chapter 4

"What is your analysis, Soundwave?" Megatron demanded, resisting the urge to lose his temper with the incredible din that the cassettebots were creating. Ravage and Laserbeak- Buzzsaw was undergoing repairs- stood together on one side of the cavern, snarling and screeching at the unicorn, trapped by the energon net at the other.

Skywarp and Starscream had deposited their captives in the nearby outpost, only partially converted from the natural cave system it had once been. The walls were half metal, half rock, and only a handful of equipment had been moved in, including a computer console in the main cavern, which Starscream, Rumble and Frenzy were busy installing parts of, and electronic doors between chambers. Hound, Windcharger and the unicorn were in the main cavern, for lack of any other place to put them at the moment; the unconscious Autobots had been parted from their weaponry and bound with energon rope, while the unicorn had been left tangled in the energon net. On-line but helpless under the drain of the net, it lay flat against the floor, its limbs splayed at uncomfortable looking angles and its head pinned down sideways. It glared at the Decepticons gathered about it, which only seemed to antagonize the cassettebots more. Even Megatron found something about that gaze unnerving; only Soundwave seemed unfazed as he scanned the creature.

"Energy readings in the creature's system are abnormal," Soundwave concluded in his usual monotone, as he ran some sort of handheld device over the length of the unicorn. He held it over the horn for a moment. "The position of the horn is causing a disruption to the power flow. It channels it into new pathways."

"Meaning?" Megatron asked as he walked over to look over Soundwave's readings, his tone slightly more threatening than normal.

"The implications are unknown. Energy flow of this nature has never been documented before."

"Then what good is it to us if we cannot find a way to use it?" Megatron snarled, waving his hand at the unicorn dismissively. The reaction was as sudden as it was surprising- with a burst of energy the unicorn snapped its head up despite the net, its horn glowing a bright blue, and it jabbed it at Megatron's arm. The Decepticon leader immediately pulled it back, but not quick enough to avoid being grazed along the forearm. An acrid smell entered the air as Megatron stared at his arm and the singed armor there. Starscream snickered behind him.

"Having some trouble, fearless _leader_?" he said snidely.

"How dare you!" Megatron roared at the unicorn, pointing his fusion gun at it as it lay helpless once more, its energy spent. The barrel of the gun glowed as Megatron gathered energy for the killing blow- but then it started to fade, as he reconsidered his choice of action. Perhaps this creature could still be useful- and he could have his revenge upon it for its impudence.

"Soundwave, prepare one of the other chambers. We will dissect this creature and learn its secrets." He smiled maliciously as Soundwave acknowledged the order and left the chamber, all of the cassettebots in tow. ("Finally," muttered Rumble, "that thing was givin' me the creeps!") No sooner had the door slid shut behind them, a message came across the computer- it was Skywarp from one of the lower caverns. He had been tasked with building a holding cell for the prisoners and needed help with something. Grumbling something about good help being hard to find, Megatron was about to send Starscream down when he had a better idea. He hadn't forgotten the Seeker's earlier remark.

"I will assist Skywarp, Starscream. Since you seem to enjoy our new acquisition so much, you will be given the pleasure of watching it and the Autobots while I am gone." His smile was just as malicious as the one he'd had at the thought of dissecting the unicorn as he left the sputtering Starscream alone with it and its piercing gaze.

Muttering to himself and trying to ignore the icy stare, Starscream turned his attention back to the computer, and all else in the cavern was quiet. What the Seeker did not realize, however, was that the unicorn was not the only one watching him. Hound had started to come around sometime during Soundwave's assessment of the unicorn's energy flow, and though he'd still been woozy from the effects of the null ray, he'd had wits enough to know that for the time being it was in his best interest to pretend he was still off-line. As his head had cleared, he had begun to assess his situation, and it didn't look good. The null ray had corrupted his memory from the moments before he had been struck- he didn't know if he'd been able to send out a distress signal for the others to find him, and even if Soundwave wasn't already jamming communications out of this location, he'd detect Hound's signal as soon as he tried to send it.

With Starscream's back to him, the scout chanced a look at Windcharger, lying bound next to him, but couldn't determine his companion's condition. He looked to his other side, in the direction of the unicorn, and the creature met his gaze, fixing him with the same accusing glare it had given to the Decepticons. Hound quickly looked away, focusing instead on the energon rope binding his hands. Whichever Seeker had tied it hadn't done a very good job; Hound had been steadily testing it and carefully working at it while everyone was distracted, and he thought he might be able to get free...

Starscream couldn't take it anymore. Even facing the computer console, he could still feel the unicorn's stare on his back. He whirled around and was met by its blue eyes, burning so fiercely he felt as though they'd pierce straight through to his spark...

"Stop staring at me," he commanded, but was met with only silence. "Stop staring at me!" he shouted, stomping over to the creature. The unicorn still didn't look away, and Starscream was starting to feel foolish, which only made him angrier. He looked around, as if expecting someone to jump out of the walls to stop him from what he was about to do; when he was sure that there were no witnesses, he violently kicked the unicorn.

Hound inwardly flinched at the crack of metal against metal, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. The unicorn grunted in pain, and Starscream kicked it again, and again, even more furiously. Causing the creature pain felt good, as if he could release all of his frustrations upon it. The unicorn began to cry out, just as Hound felt his left hand slip free of the energon cord. _Starscream_, he thought, watching the distracted Seeker while undoing the bonds around his legs, _your cruelty will cost you..._

Starscream was enjoying himself so much that he didn't even notice the scout as he crept up behind him. Hound tapped him on the shoulder, and Starscream spun around just in time to see Hound's fist as it connected with his face. The Seeker crumpled to the ground, and Hound bent over him to make sure he'd been knocked off line, pleased that that move had worked so well. And Prowl said he couldn't learn anything from watching Earth cartoons!

Satisfied that Starscream wouldn't give them any trouble, he quickly detached the Seeker's null rays and rushed over to Windcharger, who began to rouse as Hound freed him from the energon ropes. He helped the smaller Autobot get shakily to his feet.

"Wha- what happened?" Windcharger asked, holding a hand to his head.

"We've got to get out of here," Hound replied, pressing one of the stolen guns into Windcharger's hand. He looked toward the door opposite the one that the Decepticons had exited from, hoping that the assumption that they'd gone deeper into the cave proved true.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Windcharger stumbled to the door and began to fumble with the control panel.

"Hold on," Hound said, his gaze wandering to the corner where Starscream lay crumpled and the unicorn was still trapped. Without entirely realizing it, he found himself walking in that direction.

"Hound, we don't have time for this!" Windcharger hissed. The scout didn't give any indication of having heard him as he started to kneel next to the unicorn. "Hound!"

"This is one prize the Decepticons aren't going to get," Hound said, reaching to grab the energon net. The unicorn lunged at him with a surprising burst of strength, checked only by the weight of the net, and he jumped back with a shout.

"Forget about it!" Windcharger pleaded, a note of desperation in his voice as he slid the door open. Hound approached the unicorn again; the beast glared at him, but this time he steadily met it with his own optics, and this time the unicorn looked away, offering no further resistance as he again attempted to untangle the net. It was unpleasant work; the energon netting numbed his fingers every time he came into contact with it, and the unicorn shuddered any time he brushed against it, but after what seemed an eternity- in reality, only a few minutes- the unicorn was disentangled enough that it could struggle out from under it and onto its feet. Almost as an afterthought, Hound flung the netting onto Stascream. Without sparing the Autobots a second glance, the unicorn shot by Windcharger and disappeared into the gloom of the corridor beyond.

"All right, let's go!" Windcharger yelled, but another sound from the opposite end of the cavern commanded both Autobots' attention. Windcharger turned just in time to see Hound's chest explode, surprise and horror mixed on the scout's face as the force of the blast knocked him down.

"Leaving so soon?" came a rasping, mocking voice as several figures entered the room. Soundwave lead them, though it was not he who had spoken; in his hand was Megatron, transformed and powering up for a second shot as his sights swung from Hound to Windcharger.

"M-Megatron..." Starscream moaned weakly as he started to come to.

"I'll deal with you later, Starscream," the Decepticon leader said dismissively as Soundwave walked past the fallen Seeker, Skywarp and the cassettebots in tow. The procession continued forward menacingly toward Windcharger, who could do nothing except back away. Whether he fled or fired back, even he wouldn't be fast enough to avoid the next blast. Soundwave stopped in the center of the room and took aim, as Windcharger prepared his own gun in the desperate hope that he'd at least do some damage before Megatron sent him to the Matrix.

A soundless shadow burst from the corridor at Windcharger's back, colliding with Soundwave just as Megatron fired. Windcharger was pelted by fragments of rock as the fusion cannon blasted the wall above his head, and the Decepticons exploded into chaos as the unicorn pulled its horn free from Soundwave's wrist. The attack had sent Megatron flying; he was already transforming back to robot mode as he arced through the air. He landed on his feet, but immediately doubled over in pain, and Windcharger quickly saw why: the unicorn's horn had skewered both Soundwave and Megatron, nearly severing the former's hand and piercing the side of the Decepticon commander. The wound wasn't fatal, but it was deep; Megatron could barely stand.

Not waiting for a command, Ravage leaped forward to defend his injured leader, snapping at the unicorn and driving it back. The other cassettebots joined him, surrounding the unicorn as it slashed and kicked at them. Seizing the moment of confusion, Windcharger leaped for cover behind some of the electronics and opened fire on the stricken Decepticons, hitting Ravage, who yelped before dropping senseless. Bemused, Skywarp charged at the Autobot, and Windcharger dropped the null ray and started charging his electromagnets. Though still weak, they managed just enough power to hurl the Seeker into a wall, taking a hapless Rumble down with him along the way. Frenzy jumped aside, forgetting the unicorn's sharp hooves just long enough for the beast to kick back and send him flying into the pile, anyway. Laserbeak, realizing he was the last healthy Decepticon standing and not liking the odd, broke off his attack and fled back to Soundwave, who stopped clutching his injured hand just long enough to open his tape deck and allow him entry.

It was then that Thundercracker rushed in from the main entrance. "Megatron, perimeter scans detect several Autobot signatures incoming. I need backup to- wha?" The Seeker stared uncomprehendingly for a moment at the carnage before him, ducking just in time to avoid a shot from Windcharger.

"Decepticons- retreat through the rear exit!" Megatron ordered, leaning on Soundwave as the two shuffled toward the door they had entered through. Skywarp, Rumble and Frenzy hastily managed to untangle themselves and follow, Skywarp trying to keeping the raging unicorn at bay while the two cassettebots half carried and half dragged Ravage to safety. Thundercracker provided cover fire behind them, pinning Windcharger to keep him from following.

"Wa-wait for me!" came a pitiful voice. Starscream, still partially entangled in the net, had struggled free just enough to hobble towards the exit. Thundercracker answered him with a smirk before hitting the emergency lock on the door.

"No!" Starscream wailed, diving for the closing doors. He'd have never made it had the unicorn not charged him then, connecting with his aft and sending him howling through just as the doors slammed shut. The cavern fell suddenly, eerily quiet.

Windcharger stepped out from behind the computer, his optics finding Hound. The fallen scout was still alive, but only just- sparks arced from his ruined chest, and his body twitched in ghastly spasms. Windcharger knew that there was nothing he nor anyone else could do to save him.

A movement in his peripheral vision caught his attention, and he instinctively raised his gun and pointed it in that the direction. The unicorn was making its way toward Hound silently, cautiously. Windcharger followed it with the barrel of the gun, trigger at the ready, expecting it to attack at any moment, not willing to let it further harm Hound, who'd given his life to save the infernal thing. It reached the stricken Autobot's side and stopped, solemnly regarding him for a moment, as Windcharger felt his finger tighten on the trigger. Then, it looked up and met Windcharger's optics directly, and he was surprised by what he saw in the beast's gaze- they were gentle, and almost pleading.

Never fully understanding why, Windcharger lowered his gun.

The unicorn knelt on its forelegs, its horn beginning to glow. Slowly, carefully, it touched its horn to Hound, who stopped twitching. Windcharger could see that he was still alive, however; the spark of life shone in his optics, and it seemed to grow stronger as the unicorn continued to make contact with him. Soon he began to stir again, but it was purposeful movement, as though he were coming back on-line from a good recharge.

The surreal moment was broken an instant later as the main doors burst open and Wheeljack, Bumblebee and Spike rushed in, the two Autobots with their weapons drawn. They took one look at the unicorn and turned their guns upon it, and too late Windcharger realized what it looked like to them- they saw the dangerous, wild unicorn hovering over Hound, its deadly horn embedded in his savaged chest...

"Stop!" he cried, but he was drowned out by the sound of the lasers' discharge. The unicorn reared up, screaming as it was struck, and it glowed for a moment before disintegrating into thin air. The smell of burnt metal hung heavily in the air.

"Ratchet!" Wheeljack turned and called behind him, and the medical officer pushed his way through and ran to Hound. Windcharger just stared numbly as more Autobots entered the cavern.

"Is he all right?" Spike asked desperately.

"I'm fine, Spike," Hound replied, trying feebly to get up. Ratchet gently but firmly pushed him back down as he examined the damage.

"What happened here?" Wheeljack asked, looking around at the various holes left in the walls from laser fire, and one curiously Skywarp shaped imprint to the side. "We got a distress call from Hound, but it was cut off before we could pinpoint the exact location, so everyone in the vicinity got here as fast as we could to scour the area. We spotted Thundercracker on patrol and managed to home in on this location, but it looks like we missed one wild party."

Windcharger still found his vocalizer refusing to engage. Fortunately, Hound spoke for both of them. "We were captured by the Decepticons and brought here with the unicorn. We managed to get free and held them off until you arrived. The unicorn-"

"Will you lie still?" Ratchet snapped at him, irritable. This pattern of damage made no sense- Hound had obviously suffered massive damage, but his vital systems were not only completely intact, they seemed to have been restored to factory condition, as if his self-repair systems had been working at an impossible speed and to an impossible degree. There was something going on here that Ratchet didn't understand, and he didn't like it one bit.

Windcharger finally found his voice. "The unicorn... it, it was just trying to help..." he trailed off, not sure what else to say.

Wheeljack looked to the spot where the unicorn had last been before it disappeared, his normally cheery demeanor now tinged with regret. "Yeah, I was sorry to have to destroy it, but when we saw it bearing down on Hound like that, we couldn't take any chances."

"Do you think it could have escaped? Teleported out?" Spike asked hopefully.

"No," Hound said quickly. "My sensors aren't detecting any of its teleportation signature. It was completely vaporized- I saw it with my own optics."

"I told you to stop- oh, never mind! You'll be fine once I get you back for repairs. Somebody call in Skyfire for an airlift!" Ratchet was so flustered that he didn't notice that Hound's sensors were actually off-line, or the knowing look that he shot Windcharger. The smaller Autobot gave a small nod in understanding, and the faintest smile crossed his face as the others prepared to move Hound.

They were all about to leave when Spike froze in utter dread.

"What's wrong, Spike?" Bumblebee asked.

"We're in deep trouble," he replied. "We might need reinforcements."

"What is it?" A note of alarm had now entered Bumblebee's voice.

"I just realized that we left Carly in the woods."

"It's sure been quiet around here lately," Jazz remarked to some of the off duty Autobots in the Ark one day. It had been several months since the incident with the unicorn, and Decepticon activity had been minimal as they'd recovered and regrouped. "I think we might've been on to something with that unicorn- if just one of them can do that much damage to the Decepticons, imagine what a _cavalry_ of 'em could do!"

"No, _thanks_," muttered Huffer. "One of them was trouble enough. For us, that is!"

This elicited a few chuckles from those around them. Even Spike smiled a little, and looking over at Carly he could see that she was, too. Things had pretty much returned to normal in the intervening months- Hound had completely recovered, Carly was talking to him again- and everyone was enjoying the respite. The unicorn was rarely mentioned anymore, especially since Hound and Windcharger seemed reluctant to talk about their encounter with it. They tended to just exchange an odd glance with each other, as though they shared some special secret. Spike had long since given up trying to tease it out of them. Even now, although they were smiling like the others, it seemed as though it was for a different reason.

"We should take it as a lesson in caution with the beings we create," Optimus said mildly. "Let's not forget that we ended up having to destroy it." The others nodded, and the atmosphere about the Ark became somber for a moment.

The moment was destroyed as Wheeljack entered the room. "Prime!" he said eagerly. "I'd like to talk to you about an experiment I want to design."

"Oh?" Prime's voice was edged with caution.

"Haven't you learned anything?" Huffer groaned.

"Yeah, Wheeljack, I think we've had all of your experiments we can take," Bumblebee chimed in.

"But I've got a great idea for a design! This inspired me. What do you think?" he said, holding up the tattered remains of the mythology book that had stared it all. It was open to the picture of a large, fire breathing dragon.

Mount St. Hillary itself seemed to shake with the chorused "No!" that rang throughout it.

* * *

Stephanie sat by herself beneath the charred stump of what had once been her favorite tree, hoping the serenity of the forest would wash away the memories of Karen and her friends, and how they'd made fun of her at the house that morning until she couldn't stand it anymore.

She sighed deeply, her face feeling stiff with dried tears. This was the first time since the attack that she'd come back here, and though the trees still bore scars from the fire, new growth had started to cover it over. She wished that she could just stay there, and watch the forest heal itself, but she knew that sooner or later she'd have to go back home and face Karen.

_Will I be like that when I grow up? _she thought, as the shadows began to lengthen. It would start to get dark soon; she would have to start back.

A glimmer of movement caught her eye from the far side of the clearing. She stared at it; at first she thought it was just a trick of the light and shadow, but as she watched, one of the shadows did seem to be moving of its own accord. A form seemed to coalesce before her, and a creature stepped forward, so silent as to be made of dream itself. Girl and dream regarded one another for a moment; then, as quietly as it appeared, it vanished, leaving in the clearing a wide eyed child and a world now full of promise.


End file.
